Lightning Fill In The Blank

Now onto our final game, Lightning Fill in the Blank. Each of our players will have 60 seconds in which to answer as many fill-in-the-blank questions as he or she can. Each correct answer now worth two points. Carl, can you give us the scores?

CARL KASELL: We have a tie for first place, Peter. Tom Bodett and Faith Salie both have three points. Mo Rocca has two.

SAGAL: OK. Mo, you're in third place so you're up first. The clock will start when I begin your first question, fill in the blank. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz was the cabinet member chosen not to attend Tuesday's blank.

MO ROCCA: State of the Union.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: After nearly 700 passengers and crew members fell ill, a blank headed for Puerto Rico returned to New Jersey.

ROCCA: A cruise ship.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: A team of scientists from Boston and Japan announced Wednesday that they had discovered an easy way to create blank.

ROCCA: Oh, stem cells.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert said Thursday that Republicans should pass a bill giving legal status to blank.

ROCCA: Immigrants - illegal immigrants.

SAGAL: Undocumented immigrants, yes.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: A police investigation in Berlin has determined that an explosion at a diary farm was caused by blank.

ROCCA: By flatulent cows?

SAGAL: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

ROCCA: Whoa, I just guessed that.

SAGAL: Marlboro Man Eric Lawson died this week at age 72 making him the fifth Marlboro Man to die of a disease related to blank.

ROCCA: Smoking.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: Twenty term California Democrat blank announced Thursday that he is retiring from congress.

ROCCA: Henry Waxman.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: British courts heard a case against a millionaire...

(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)

SAGAL: ...who couldn't understand why his ex-wife was upset that he asked her to blank.

(LAUGHTER)

ROCCA: (Unintelligible) his wife was upset that he asked her to - asked her to do something with his dirty underwear.

SAGAL: No.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: The millionaire couldn't understand why his ex-wife was upset that he asked her to stay on as his maid.

(SOUNDBITE OF SURPRISE)

SAGAL: The London man says his ex-wife became so aggressive when he asked her a simple question, hey honey, would you mind cleaning up after me and my new girlfriend?

ROCCA: Wow.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Carl, how did Mo do on our quiz?

KASELL: Mo had seven correct answers for 14 more points. He now has 16 points and Mo has the lead.

SAGAL: Well done.

(APPLAUSE)

SAGAL: OK. We have flipped a coin. Faith has elected to go second. Here we go. Legendary folk singer and political activist blank died Monday at age 94.

FAITH SALIE: Pete Seeger.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: On Thursday the U.S. told blank to take immediate steps to remove its chemical weapons materials.

SALIE: Syria.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: On Wednesday the Justice Department announced that it had opened a criminal investigation of the theft of credit card information from blank.

SALIE: Target?

SAGAL: Yes.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: On Thursday federal prosecutors announced they would seek the death penalty against the man suspected of bombing the blank.

SALIE: Boston Marathon.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: A British driver with only a learner's permit had her car seized after police discovered that the quote "adult driver" who was overseeing her was blank.

SALIE: A kindergartner.

SAGAL: Her pet parrot.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Because it has more than 100,000 signatures, the White House will have to respond to a petition urging the deportation of blank.

SALIE: Justin Bieber.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

(APPLAUSE)

SAGAL: On Thursday an Italian court upheld the previous murder conviction of American blank.

SALIE: Amanda Knox.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: A North Carolina woman is facing counterfeiting charges...

(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)

SAGAL: ...after trying to spend a $100 bill that listed blank as the Secretary of the Treasury.

SALIE: Oh, Justin Bieber.

SAGAL: No.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: It listed someone named Mo Money.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: The woman...

ROCCA: I'm for that.

SAGAL: ...the woman attempted to use the counterfeit bill at a local convenience store but the store immediately identified it as a fake, not only because instead of the Treasury Secretary's signature it was signed by Mo Money, but because underneath the signature it read - and this is true - proprietor of the counterfeiting.

(LAUGHTER)

ROCCA: Excuse me, it's - forgive me, it's Maurice Money.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Carl, how did Faith do?

KASELL: Faith had six correct answers for 12 more points. She now has 15 points but Mo still has the lead with 16.

SAGAL: All right. And Carl, how many then does Tom need to win?

KASELL: Tom needs at least seven correct answers to win.

SAGAL: Here we go, Tom. This is for the game. Fill in the blank. This week two Norwegian lawmakers announced that they were nominating NSA leaker blank for the Nobel Peace Prize.

TOM BODETT: Edward Snowden?

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: Negotiations to ease tensions between protestors and the government in blank stalled Thursday when the president went on sick leave.

BODETT: The Ukraine.

SAGAL: Right.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: French electronic music duo Daft Punk was the big winner at this year's blank awards.

BODETT: That would be - is that the Grammy's?

SAGAL: It is.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: Amazon announced this week that it made charge as much as 50 percent for its blank membership.

BODETT: Its premium.

SAGAL: Yeah, prime (unintelligible)...

BODETT: Prime, yeah.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: A man in New York pled guilty this week to smuggling blank into the United States.

SAGAL: With a strong earnings report and the new mobile app, stocks for the social networking site blank hit all time highs on Thursday.

BODETT: Oh, Facebook.

SAGAL: Yes.

(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)

SAGAL: The appeal to romantics an underwear company in Japan...

(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)

SAGAL: ...has developed a bra that will only open if its wearer is blank.

BODETT: Oh, right. It's the chastity bra. Oh, what do you have to do? Be married?

SAGAL: No. It will only open if the wearer is in love.

BODETT: Oh.

(LAUGHTER)

ROCCA: Oh, it's a mood bra.

SAGAL: It is pretty much.

(LAUGHTER)

ROCCA: So it might open Wednesday (unintelligible), you know.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Just in time for Valentine's Day, Japan has introduced the Love Bra, which has a clasp that will only unlock if the wearer's heart rate elevates to a certain level, meaning that the bra can only be removed if the user is in love, or jogging...

(LAUGHTER)

ROCCA: ...or had a lot of coffee.

SAGAL: ...or thinking about her bra suddenly popping open.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Carl, did Tom do well enough to win?

KASELL: He came close but Mo Rocca has 16 points and he is this week's champion.

SAGAL: Well done, Mo.

(APPLAUSE)

ROCCA: And I'm going to Sochi.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: In just a minute, we're going to ask our panelists to predict the highlight of next week's opening ceremonies in Sochi. But first, let me tell you... Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.